Did you know that approximately 60% of immunity is within our digestive system? That’s right, if you are constantly getting sick it might be due to poor gut health. This is not uncommon either. Due to our fast-paced lifestyle of eating on the go, snacking while standing, consuming large amounts of sugar in the form of high fructose corn syrup and refined carbohydrates, constant stress, and overuse and abuse of antibiotics we are hurting our gut all the time!

Probiotics will compete with the bad bugs that we have created and displace them. This good flora found in the probiotics, also known as “symbiotic” won’t necessarily kill the bad bugs. Instead, it will prevent them from doing harm. Hooray for probiotics!

Chemotherapy, steroids and corticosteroids, NSAIDS, antacids, increased age, sulfur drugs and birth control pills are other causes of lowered/dangered intestinal flora.

Several strains of probiotics exist on the market today. You can even find this good flora in yogurt but always remember how much processing went into that cup of creamy goodness! With that said, how much good flora are you actually getting per spoonful?

When you find a probiotic that works for you, your health and immune system will thrive. Those with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), constant diarrhea or constipation, and a compromised immune system will probably notice the most positive changes happening in their body after a few weeks or implementing a daily probiotic regimen.

Although probiotics are being added to almost every health product on the market today, it is important to seek one that is of high potency and works with your own individual chemistry. There are zillions of strains that exist and what might be good for your neighbor may not be so good for you!

This entry was posted on Monday, February 25th, 2008 at 3:04 am and is filed under Nutrition. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.